


A Bun In The Oven

by PinkPandorafrog



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Baby Fic, F/M, Kid Fic, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-18
Updated: 2016-03-26
Packaged: 2018-05-14 20:20:46
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 12,466
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5756968
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PinkPandorafrog/pseuds/PinkPandorafrog
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A series of short, unrelated baby!fics and kid!fics.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Darcy/Sam/Steve

Darcy reached up for the bright orange popcorn bowl and made a face as her belly pressed into the side of the counter, getting in her way. “This is bad.” They purposely did movie nights in her apartment because Sam and Steve were both in the over-six-feet-tall club and there were things that they just did that they didn't even consider that someone almost (or over) a foot shorter couldn't get at, but now... Now it was looking like Darcy was going to have to adjust her own apartment for her rapidly expanding waistline and dwindling reach.

She heard the front door open and close, and she stood there in her kitchen, hands on her hips as she glared up at the offending bowl.

Steve came in. Of course it was Steve, he always showed up a little bit earlier than Sam. Usually that meant making out in her kitchen until Sam did show up, but now she just wasn't in the damn mood, at least not with the popcorn bowl sitting up there and mocking her.

“Hey,” she greeted, turning her face up for his warm kiss of greeting without actually taking her eyes off her plastic nemesis.

“Hey, Darce.” He stood beside her, looking between her and the bowl with his own hands on his hips. “What did it do?”

“I can't fucking _reach_ it.”

To his credit, Steve rubbed his hand over his mouth, not-quite hiding his smile, but enough that Darcy could totally ignore it. “Need a hand?”

She nodded. “Please. Since it's your fault I can't fucking reach it anyway.”

He hesitated for a second, his eyes moving over her face before he turned away to face the cupboard again. Of course, it was no big deal for him to reach. “My fault?” The question was a little too light, too pointedly casual.

Darcy sighed, an irrational trace of guilt shooting through her.. “Well, maybe. At the very least, you participated.” That was true enough.

It was _killing_ her that she didn't know who the father of the fetus she was currently gestating was. Not that it mattered, not really, but it was something she didn't know and it was driving her insane. The first trimester of pregnancy had gone so fucking smoothly, though, that she didn't really realize that she _was_ pregnant until after the doctor was a little more dubious about actually doing an amnio, especially since she was young and healthy with really no genetic risks.

Which maybe meant it was Steve's? Maybe. There'd been little things, of course, little symptoms that she'd written off until she'd ended up passing out from low blood pressure one day. And the gas bubbles she'd been feeling was actually little tiny hands and feet. Who even knew.

Steve grabbed the bowl and pulled it out, setting it gently on the counter. Darcy already had the bag of popcorn ready to go, so she popped it into the microwave and got it going.

Large hands settled on her shoulders, fingers digging into her sore muscles with just the right amount of pressure. Steve was the undisputed backrub king, something she was more than happy to take advantage of. Especially now.

The pops of corn got further and further apart, and Darcy pulled the bag out of the microwave and emptied it into the bowl. Instead of going out of the kitchen to go sit down, though, she leaned forward onto her forearms on the counter as a big, giant hint.

Which Steve got, thankfully. His hands skimmed down over her back until he was massaging the small of her back, just above her hips, where her back always started to hurt by the end of the day from having to cart around not only her belly, but also her breasts which had grown impossibly larger.

She let out a low moan just as the door opened and closed again. In just a second she heard Sam laughing from the entry to the kitchen. “From the sounds of things, I'd wondered what you two were up to. I should have known.”

Darcy just waved at him, figuring that if she opened her mouth to say anything she'd just let out another loud moan.

“How are you feeling today?” Sam asked. He was getting closer, she could hear him moving across the kitchen.

She waited until Steve finished rubbing her back to answer, standing up and turning around to look at him. “Okay. Tired.”

He leaned down to kiss her. “I promise I won't make fun of you if you fall asleep during the movie again.”

“That's what you said last time.” Still, she couldn't help but smile as his hand rubbed warmly over her belly. Whoever's the baby was, they would be loved, that was for sure.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The same 'verse as Lovely and Uncomplicated


	2. Darcy/Thor/Tony

It sure would have been nice to know about Thor’s reputation as a fertility god _before_ all of the sex had happened. That sure would have been awesome. Because apparently he triggered her ovaries to ovulate _anyway_ , despite the birth control.

Jane had convinced Darcy to see a doctor when she suddenly became a morning person. Like, she felt the best she’d ever felt _ever_ , and apparently there was a reason for that. Yeah. A six-and-a-half-foot-tall blond reason. And when he did something, he really went all out. She found out she was having twins.

Because of the whole half-alien thing, Darcy had had an amnio to see how the babies were doing, and to see if Helen would be able to pick up anything _significant_ , genetically speaking. What she’d found, however, Darcy was solely blaming Thor for.

She hadn’t really told either he or Tony about her appointment, just in case things didn’t go well. So when she let herself out of Helen’s lab she had news. “Where are they?” she asked JARVIS as she walked through the hall to the elevator.

“They are in Mr. Stark’s lab,” came the helpful response. “Shall I alert them that you’re on your way?”

“No, I’ll be there soon enough.” Darcy was practically skipping as she entered the elevator. She just felt _that_ good.

In almost no time she was getting off a floor up. When she pulled the glass door to Tony’s lab open, two pairs of eyes swung up to see her. “So I have news,” she announced by way of greeting, moving through the lab and hoisting herself onto a table to face them. Her feet dangled down and she swung them idly, her gaze moving between them.

“Good news, or bad news?” Tony asked, his eyes narrowing a little as he focused on her. Which was entirely fair, the last time she’d announced she had news she’d told them that she’d been knocked up.

“Well… I saw Helen today. Um, so twins, right?” Her hand came up to rest over the slight bump at her waistline.

Thor beamed as he walked over to her. He was _excited_ about having kids. Of course he was. Odin apparently was less so, but Darcy found herself not really giving a fuck. “Yes.” He stopped in front of her and leaned down to brush a kiss against her cheek.

“So… Surprise, one of them actually yours.” Darcy lifted her hand and pointed directly at Tony.

He stared at her for a second, his hands coming up to rest on his hips. “That’s not possible,” he said after a moment. “I was snipped years ago.”

“You remember that whole discussion we had where it turned out Thor was a fertility god?” Darcy gave Thor a pointed look. That hadn’t been so much a discussion as it had been a lot of yelling on her part, and then crying. She’d adjusted a lot better to the idea since then.

Tony blinked as his eyes moved from her to Thor and back again. He sat down heavily in the swiveling chair that was just beside him. “Wait. You reversed my vasectomy?”

“Oh, yeah.” Darcy gave him a pointed look. “Now it’s a big deal. When Super Sperm here circumvented my birth control you weren’t so concerned about the whole thing.” She jerked her thumb at Thor, who was still beaming broadly.

“You were worried about being left out,” he said, his hand coming to rest against the small of Darcy’s back. “This should put your mind at ease.”

“Wait.” She looked back and forth between them before focusing on Tony again. “You were worried about being left out?” This was definitely the first she’d heard of it.

He turned towards the desk he was sitting in front of, picking up the tablet that was sitting there and poking at it a few times. “I wouldn’t say left out, just raising twins together would take up a lot of your time.” He frowned at the tablet like it had done something wrong.

Darcy scooted forward until she slid off the edge of the table, and walked over to Tony. She turned the back of his chair around and sank down to sit across his thighs. His arms settled around her waist almost automatically. “We talked about this. The three of us, remember? Plus I’m gonna need help with the advanced math homework your kid will probably do for fun.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's all Thor's fault.  
> Continues [here](http://archiveofourown.org/works/5572258/chapters/17715982).


	3. Darcy/Bucky

Darcy stepped wrong on a something, a rock or something like that, and she lost her balance. Her arms were full, her response was automatic. She clutched Isabella tightly to her chest, dropping her coffee and the overstuffed tote she used as a diaper bag in favor of reaching for the wall. She was able to right herself before she met the ground, and she’d have no more than a bruised elbow to show for it. And Isabella was okay, that was the most important part.

The rest of it, though… She could only look down at the mess on the floor with wide eyes. Diapers, her phone, wipes, the spare changes of clothes, keys… Everything was spread out in the growing puddle of what had been her mostly-full cup of coffee.

“Fuck everything,” she muttered, heaving a sigh. It had just been one of those days. Isabella was cutting her first teeth, no matter that she was only four months old. In addition to the not-sleeping and the being-cranky-from-pain, she was also gnawing when she nursed which was _way_ less fun than it sounded.

The tylenol had finally kicked in, and Darcy had taken the opportunity to get out and get the errands done that she needed to. Only there had been lines of cranky people, she’d had to get in someone’s face for saying something when she’d dared nurse Isabella when she sat down for a cup of much-needed coffee, and now, at the end of it… This.

Hot tears were stinging her eyes. As if on cue, Isabella started fussing.

“Hey,” came probably the one voice she didn’t want to hear. James Barnes, Bucky, had moved in shortly after she had. It was hard not to lust after him, but she had to be real. She was the single mom of a baby who worked entirely too much and spent the rest of her time devoted to her daughter. Pride made her always want to look her best around him, and she was definitely not at her best now.

But she swiped the tears away and turned to him, giving him her best attempt at a bright smile that probably fell pretty flat. “Hi.”

His blue eyes took in the fussy baby in her arms before sweeping to the mess on the floor. Without another word he fished her phone out of the puddle, drying it off on his pants before handing it to her. “JARVIS, we’re gonna need a clean up here,” he said to the AI.

“Of course, sir,” came the response.

He picked up the diaper bag and moved away a little bit to shake all of the coffee off. “Anything else you’re gonna need out of the mess?”

Wordlessly, Darcy shook her head.

He gently took her elbow and steered her down the hall towards the common area at the end. “She cuttin’ teeth?” he asked as he guided her through to the couch.

“Yeah. The bottom ones.”

“My sisters made that same noise when they were growin’ theirs. You sit down.”

Darcy sat down, automatically arranging Isabella across her lap to nurse, before belatedly realizing that Bucky was moving around in the kitchen behind her. “You don’t mind, do you?”

“No, why would I?” His tone indicated that she probably didn’t have to ask.

He came back around the couch not too much later, a mug of coffee in each hand. Isabella seemed to have fallen asleep nursing, but Darcy didn’t want to move her at all for fear she’d wake up. But if she didn’t there would probably be spit-up in the near future…

“The struggle is real,” she muttered, smoothing back the dark hard on her baby’s head.

“How old is she?” Bucky asked. He set her cup down on the end table beside her before lowering himself to sit down beside her.

“Four months.”

“She’s pretty, just like her ma.”

She stared at him for a second, looking for any hint that he was making fun of her. She sure didn’t feel pretty. It had been _mumble_ since she’d been able to actually have a shower. There was probably some spit-up on her shoulder, and there was a sleeping baby attached to her boob. But his expression was earnest. “Thanks. Sorry, I’m usually a little more together, but it’s been…”

He waved away the apology. “Nothin’ to apologize for. I bet you haven’t been able to sit down and have a good dinner for a couple of days. We should grab something tonight.” She opened her mouth to protest, but he went right on talking. “You’ll have an extra pair of hands so you can actually eat.”

Darcy looked at him for a second, eyes narrowing. “Did you just ask me out?” She’d heard he was smooth back in day, and apparently…

He seemed to falter at the question, though, like his veneer of confidence slipped a little. “If that’s okay.”

“Yeah, that’s…” She gave him a smile, actually meaning it this time. “Yeah, that sounds great.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In which Steve was all, "OH MY FUCKING GOD, BUCK, JUST ASK HER OUT ALREADY."


	4. Darcy/Thor

Darcy had fallen asleep on the couch. She hadn’t meant to, she’d just put the TV on and the next thing she knew she was opening her eyes and staring at the blank TV. Someone had turned it off. Someone had also tucked her in with the afghan she’d crocheted that lived on the back of the couch. Thor was out of the country, it was the middle of the day so Jane was probably still working.

And someone was moving around in the kitchen, she could hear things being set down on the granite counter tops. Intensely curious, Darcy pushed herself to her feet, letting the afghan fall to sit on the couch cushion.

There was a tall, long-haired blonde woman in a sweeping gown moving around her kitchen as easily as if she lived there. She was… Making tea? Definitely making tea. That was a teapot on the counter and a pot of water that sounded like it was getting pretty close to a boil on the stove. Darcy didn’t even own a teapot. She wasn’t giving off any sort of dangerous vibes, tea-making notwithstanding.

Darcy stood awkwardly in the entryway. “Uh, hi?”

“Hello, Darcy Lewis.” the other woman greeted with a warm smile. “Thor’s told me so much about you.”

“Just Darcy is fine,” she replied automatically. Honestly, someone could have knocked her over with a feather. “Um… I’m sorry, but who are you?”

“I am Frigga, Thor’s mother.”

Okay, now that she’d mentioned it, Darcy could see the family resemblance. Thor was considerably taller, of course, and a lot more broad, but the eyes were the same, and the cheekbones. “Um. Welcome to Earth?”

Frigga glanced around the kitchen and nodded. “It’s been a very long time since I was here, much has changed. My grandchild, however, is certainly worth the journey.” She took the pot of water off the stove, carefully carrying it over to the counter to pour it into the waiting teapot.

The comment almost slipped by, but it was so out of place that it stuck in Darcy’s mind until she could fully register the implications behind it. “Thor has a kid?”

“Not yet. Human gestation is, what, around nine lunar months?” She finished pouring the water and set the pot back on the stove before turning around to face Darcy again. Her blue eyes dropped to Darcy’s abdomen. “I would estimate that in another seven the baby will be born.”

Darcy clamped her teeth down on the inside of her lips, staring incredulously at the other woman for a long moment. “Say what now?” Apparently she was _pregnant_? And… Frigga somehow knew when Darcy _didn’t_?

Frigga seemed to know where everything was. She pulled down a mug from the mug cupboard on the first try, setting it on the counter and pouring some of the tea into it. She lifted the mug to sniff at it, smiling contentedly as she crossed to Darcy and offered it to her.

Darcy took the mug automatically, cradling her hands around it. “So you’re from Asgard, right?” Frigga nodded. “How do you um… How do you know that I’m pregnant from all the way up there?”

“When you’ve seen as much as I have, you learn to read certain patterns.” Her arm came around Darcy’s shoulder, turning her gently around and leading her back to the living room. Darcy sat down on the couch and Frigga sat neatly next to her. “Heimdall, our Gatekeeper, keeps watch on my son for me. You have been a fixture in Thor’s life of late. Until very recently it wasn’t your habit to go to bed early, to sleep through the day.”

That was true. “I thought I was just getting sick.” She’d been a little nauseated for the past few days starting around mid-afternoon. Apparently, though, not sick. Not that kind of sick, anyway. Darcy lifted the mug to her lips and had a drink. It didn’t taste like anything she’d ever had before, but it was good. Slightly tart, slightly sweet.

Frigga nodded towards the tea. “That will alleviate the nausea. I’ve left some in the kitchen for you.”

“Uh, thanks.” She stared at the other woman for a second or two. “So, uh… Does Thor know?”

Frigga smiled again. “No. That will be your happy news to share.” She got to her feet, brushing the skirt of her gown down over her legs. “I must return. If you need me, simply let Heimdall know and I will attend you as I can.” She stooped over to press a kiss against Darcy’s forehead, a gesture that felt a little bit like a blessing, before straightening and moving towards the glass doors that led out to the balcony. It wasn’t long after she’d let herself outside that the Bifrost came down and sucked her up.

Slightly bemused, Darcy settled back against the back of the couch, taking care not to spill her tea. Pregnant. Pregnant? Thor tended not to carry a cellphone, he’d forget he had it on him and the electricity would fry it, but… This was definitely something she needed to talk to him about. She could call Steve. Steve would probably let Thor borrow his phone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FRIGGA DOESN'T DIE!!!!


	5. Darcy/Daniel

Darcy's eyes widened as she caught sight of the two very familiar men walking through the office in her general direction. They probably weren't there to see her, of course, and sure enough Peggy came into view to greet them both with warm hugs. She didn't even pretend to be doing work as she watched them talking and catching up.

Jim's eyes swept through the office and seemed to light up when the stopped on her. A grin covered his face, and he immediately started moving through the office towards her. “Darcy!”

“Hey, Jim.” She got to her feet and rested her hands on his shoulders just as he leaned over to brush his lips gently across hers. “When did you get into town?” It had been... A long time since she'd seen Jim. She hadn't even seen him in New York while she'd been there.

“Just this morning. Peggy's got a job for us, something we need to take care of.” His eyes moved over her as his hands settled lightly over her hips. “Are you... Having a baby?”

She made a face, very conscious of her rapidly-expanding waistline. “Well, not right _now_... But yes.”

“How'd that happen? You need us to take care of someone for you?” There was no doubt he was serious about the offer, too.

“No, I'm fine. It's...” Darcy made a face again. “It's a bit of a situation, but I've got it handled.”

Jim looked a little dubious, but he nodded. “If you say so. You let me know if you change your mind.” He was quiet for a second. “Why didn't you let me know you were on this side of the country? I'm close enough that I coulda made a weekend trip or something.”

“Yeah, but you just got back into the country.” His eyebrow raised a little in surprise, and she nodded to where Tim was still talking to Peggy. “I keep in touch with Tim, he tells me how all you guys are doing.”

“Yeah, he said.”

Darcy could hear Daniel making his way towards them, and she knew it was specifically towards them, too, no matter that he knew Tim was actually in charge. Of course he was. He came to a stop just beside her, and she looked up to see him sort of glowering at Jim. So this was going to be fun. “Chief Sousa, I'm in charge of the Los Angeles office of the SSR.”

Jim took a step back, slipping away from Darcy, and offered his hand to the other man. “Jim Morita.” They shook.

Tim and Peggy were making their way over at that point, and Jim moved out of the way so that Tim could lean down and enfold Darcy in a big hug. She brushed her lips against his cheek, and he straightened away from her. His eyes widened as he caught sight of her belly. “Now, you didn't tell me about all of that.” There was a faintly accusatory tone in his voice.

“Yeah...” She made a face. “Sorry. Uh, surprise?”

His blue eyes were serious as he looked down at her. “Is there someone I need to talk to about this, Darcy?”

Darcy very pointedly did not look back at Daniel. Peggy looked faintly amused, like she was doing her very best to stay serious and it wasn't quite working. “Nope. I'm good. It's, uh... It's good.”

“Do I need to try and get time off for a wedding? You know I'll give you away if you need me to.” He would too. Tim was probably the closest thing to a male family member she had in her current situation, but...

He had to ask _that_ question. That was still a point of contention. “Uh, no. No wedding.” She made a face. “Come on, Tim. You know me. Get married?” That had actually come up quite a bit when she was shut away in her basement. Most of them had expressed incredulity at some point that she _didn't_ want to get married. And not even because she was stuck in the past, just, like, at all in general.

Beside her, Daniel sort of coughed. He didn't _say_ anything.

“If you decide you want to, you let us know.” Jim's offer pulled her attention back to him. “Between us we'll come up with something.”

Darcy's mouth turned up in a grin. “I know. Thank you.”

“Ms. Lewis, may I have a word with you?” Daniel had turned to look down at her, and she nodded at him. “It was good to meet you. Agent Carter, let me know how you've decided to handle the situation.”

He turned and headed towards his office, Darcy walking beside him. He waited until they were in his office, the door closed behind him, and he turned to look at her. “Darcy...” He looked... Irritated, and upset, and like he didn't really know what was going on.

Darcy rested her hands on her hips as she looked up at him. “I told you about the Howling Commandos, the whole stuck in the basement, they kept me company thing.”

“There had to be more to it than that.” Daniel shook his head. “You don't even say hello to me like that.”

“Uh, that's because _someone_ is all, 'We need to keep this secret because work.'” She shrugged. “I mean, yeah, there was more to it than that. I'm willing to bet money, though, that someone as hot as you didn't remain as pure as the driven snow during the war, either.” She gave him a pointed look.

He didn't seem to have an answer for that.

“Peggy's probably gonna want to let you know what's up.” Sighing, Darcy turned back to the door. She was willing to bet money this wasn't the end of this particular conversation.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is my perpetual Darcy-spends-the-war-in-a-basement AU, with a couple of minor changes for S2 of Agent Carter. Spoilers, Darcy and Morita shared some "intimate time" together.


	6. Darcy/Rumlow

Darcy had just flopped down on her couch beside Oliver when there was a knock on the door. She let out a long sigh, looking down at her fluffy gray cat. He looked entirely unamused, and completely unwilling to get up and open the door for her. Maybe whoever was at the door would go away. It wasn't like she was expecting anyone, it was probably someone selling something. And it wasn't even Girl Scout Cookie season, so she probably didn't want any.

The knock sounded again, a little more insistent this time. “Fuck,” she muttered. She pulled herself to her feet and made her way over to the door. Her sidearm was tucked in the drawer in the table there, and she pulled it out and checked it before reaching out for the doorknob with her other hand. Maternity leave or not, she was still part of Intel, and there were probably people out there who'd think having a baby in the house would make her _more_ vulnerable. As fucking if.

She unlocked the door and pulled it open, and her eyes widened in shock as she took in who was standing on the other side. It was a rainy, chilly afternoon, and Brock fucking Rumlow was standing there without a coat on, that familiar smirk on his face as his eyes dropped to where her hand was tucked behind her hip.

“What are you doing here?” was the very first thing out of her mouth, in not exactly a friendly tone. Well, they hadn't really parted on the best of terms, she could be excused.

“I'm not on the birth certificate.” His face was unreadable as he looked down at her. Yeah, so apparently this was going to be a conversation.

She sighed, stepping back from the doorway and letting him in. Her gun would have to go in the safe now, but it wasn't like he didn't know his way around her house. She left him there, turning and heading into her bedroom to lock the gun up in the safe.

It was impossible to resist peeking in at Danielle when she was in there. Danielle was sleeping on her back, tiny fists on the mattress of the crib above her head. She looked so peaceful when she was sleeping.

Darcy took in a deep breath before heading back out into the living room.

Brock had helped himself to a towel and was now sitting shirtless beside Oliver, who seemed quite happy to have him there. Oliver had been pretty disgruntled when Brock had stopped showing up on a regular basis. He wasn't quite as taken with Danielle, either. She was too loud and made sudden movements. Not the same at all.

Brock looked up at her, eyebrow raised. The unasked question hung in the air between them.

Darcy folded her arms under her breasts and sat down on the arm of the easy chair. “No, you're not.”

“Why aren't I on the birth certificate? She's mine, ain't she?”

“Yeah. Except...” She shrugged. “You seemed pretty insistent that you didn't want anything to do with her. It's _way_ easier for me to move around without having to worry about getting permission from the absent parent for doing things like crossing state and international borders.”

He stared at her for a long moment. He looked just the same as he had the last time he'd been shirtless in her living room. Maybe there was a new scar across his shoulder, maybe his hair was shorter like he'd just gotten it cut, but basically the same.

Darcy's chosen method of birth control had failed. When she'd told Brock he'd sort of freaked out a little and left. She kinda got it. He'd grown up in the foster system, and the idea of having a kid of his own was a lot for him to process. Except... Every time Darcy looked down into her daughter's face, she had a hard time believing that anyone wouldn't want anything to do with her.

“Kept expecting someone to show up and tell me I had to pay child support,” he said finally. “When no one did, I looked her up.”

“Nope. It's easier for everyone this way.” She pushed herself to her feet and moved around to the kitchen. She grabbed a mug from the drip tray beside the sink and set it on the counter, pouring herself a large mug of coffee. She didn't offer Brock one. If he wanted one, he could get it himself.

She heard him pull himself up from the couch to follow her. He stood in the entryway a moment, watching her move to the fridge and pull out the French vanilla creamer. “I miss you.”

“I haven't gone anywhere.” She gave him a pointed look before turning her coffee the desired shade of beige.

He let out a long sigh. “I'm not a good man, Darcy. I'll fuck up any kid I'm near.”

She didn't say anything to that, just turned and put the creamer back in the fridge before picking up the mug and taking a long drink.

“I miss you,” Brock said again, moving through the kitchen to stop just in front of her. He plucked the mug from her hands and set it on the nearby counter, stepping into her. His hands settled into the small of her back as he pulled her against his naked torso.

It was impossible not to respond to his closeness, physical memories springing freshly to mind. Her palms rested against his chest as she looked up into his face. “We're kind of a package deal. And as good as you are in bed, you're not worth it unless you can accept her too.”

Darcy could see the indecision plain on his face and made to slip away, but his arms tightened around her. “Can I try?” He seemed to be more asking himself than her.

“I don't know, can you?” She watched his face for a moment. “You have a lot to make up for, and if it ever comes down to it, she comes first, over everyone else. All day every day.”

He nodded.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Same 'verse as Coming in from the Rain.


	7. Darcy/Bucky/Steve

Darcy lurched out of her chair and headed towards the door to her room, one hand against her massive belly. It was supposed to open automatically. It... Didn't. “Fury, I am going to fucking kill you,” she muttered.

Her phone was tucked into the front pocket of her sweater, she pulled it out and angrily jabbed at it until it was making a two-way call.

“Darce?” Steve answered first, but Bucky wasn't very far behind him. She could hear yelling and all sorts of pew-pew noises. “Kinda in the middle of something.” He had on his super-patient voice that meant that his patience was actually being tried.

Right, like she'd call them when they were apparently under lockdown for _fun._ “Yeah, me too. Active labor. Anyone wanna tell me why my door won't open?” There was a pause that went on long enough that she would have worried about the call dropping if she hadn't been able to still hear background noises. “Okay, well as soon as you two decide to actually be helpful, give me a call back.” She pulled the phone away from her ear and angrily poked it to disconnect the call.

Maybe she could have been a little less snippy with them. Maybe. But right now it felt like the entire lower half of her torso as trying to tie itself into a knot. While still attached to everything else.

She called Fury. Not his office number, his actual private number. He answered on the second ring. “Lewis, how the hell did you get this number?”

“I'm prepared to discuss that with you later at length, but right now...” She trailed off as another contraction hit. She reached out and grabbed for her pillow, squeezing her hand around it. “I'm not doing this on my own,” was gritted out.

He paused, but not nearly as long as Bucky and Steve had. “Stay put. I'll get Cho to you.”

Darcy's eyebrows flew up. Helen hadn't delivered a baby since medical school. She knew, they'd talked about it. All, 'Haha, wouldn't it be funny if something happened and you had to deliver the baby?' It wasn't fucking funny _at all_. “You're shitting me, right? I'm willing to bet there are going to be casualties, and you'll actually need her to do actual casualty shit.” And that. That was a thing.

“I'm open to suggestions.” Fury's tone was drier than the bottom of a cinnamon jar.

“Search your personnel files for someone who's had recent EMT training and get them here. I'd do it myself, but...” She turned off the phone and threw it onto the bed. It rang again, but she so wasn't up for answering it, especially when another contraction gripped her.

She paced. She swore. She threw her pillow around the room, vowed neither Steve nor Bucky were getting anywhere near her ever again...

When they burst through the doors a couple of hours later, Darcy was dozing in bed, a tiny, blanket-wrapped bundle beside her. The angry movement of the door had her eyes flying open. Steve was stony-faced and Bucky had that lost-sad look on his face.

“Hi.” She gave them a tired smile, reaching up both her hands. “Sorry I yelled at you earlier. Labor hurts a lot.”

“You're okay? The baby's okay?” Steve stayed by the door, standing as straight as he could. She could see the worry in his eyes.

“Yeah, we're good. I mean, I feel like I just shoved a watermelon through my vagina, but you know, good.” Her eyes flicked back and forth between them, making grabby hands. “Not gonna be in a minute if no one gets their happy ass over here.”

Bucky moved across the room, gingerly sinking down onto the bed next to her. He took both of her hands in his. “I'm sorry, Darcy. We couldn't get away. There was-”

She shook her head. “Not important. You're here now. And both still alive, which is good, because I was going to pull myself out of here and kill you if you'd managed to get yourselves hurt.” She'd worried a lot about that too, probably driven poor Cameron nuts with it. But he'd been a trooper.

Bucky pressed a gentle kiss on her back of her hand. “We wanted to be here.”

“Yeah, I almost had to sit on him to keep him from storming through the base to come see you.” Steve's eyes dropped down to the back of Bucky's head, the beginnings of a smile moving across his face.

Darcy smiled up at Bucky too. “Oh, good news. Fury's agreed to work out some kind of living arrangement for the three of us.” Two pairs of blue eyes looked a question at her. “Well, four of us. I kinda called him in the middle of labor and told him that I wasn't doing this by myself.” She'd totally called him back.

Steve arched an eyebrow. “Did he say when?”

Darcy just grinned.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Fury. Darcy in labor would be a force to be reckoned with.


	8. Darcy/Steve/Thor

Steve was dancing around the living room, Sarah on his hip. Darcy couldn't help but smile as she watched them. Sarah loved her daddy so much, her eyes were wide and smiling as they watched his face.

When she'd first found out she was pregnant there was some initial freak out about whose the baby was, but since her only choices were a genetically enhanced nonagenarian and an alien, she'd figured genetic testing was in order.

Steve was over the moon when they'd found out she was his. He would have loved the baby if it had ended up being Thor's, just as Thor loved Sarah, but now... The expression on his face was incomparable.

Darcy felt a large hand settle on her hip, and she let herself lean back until she was resting against Thor's broad torso. His arms went around her, loosely clasped in front of her waist. “I've never seen him happier than when he looks at her,” he observed, his voice rumbling up from the depths of his chest behind her head.

“Right?” Darcy turned to look up at Thor. “She is pretty incredible.”

“She is.” Thor was smiling too, but there was almost a sense of sorrow in his gaze.

Her eyes narrowed a little as she looked at him. “Hey, you okay? Is it the family thing?” Thor got a little nostalgic about his family. Having Steve and Darcy- and now Sarah- helped, but he still got a bit homesick sometimes. She couldn't really blame him.

“No. At least... Not as such.” His gaze left the two in the living room, and he looked down at Darcy, watching her for a moment in silence. “He truly enjoys fatherhood.” There it was, that wistfulness again.

 _Ah_. Darcy's eyebrows went up a little. She was fairly sure she knew what this was about. Sarah had been a surprise. To be fair, between super sperm and someone who had been a fertility god, it was really only a matter of time before one of them managed to get her knocked up, despite things like birth control.

Thor had assured her that human and Asgardian physiology was compatible in a reproductive sense, and he had been just a little bit disappointed when they found out that it was Steve's swimmers who'd won the race or whatever.

“So you want to knock me up.” She turned around, resting her palms against his chest so that she had a easier time looking up into his face. His hands settled in the small of her back, holding him close. “Right?”

He glanced over her head at Steve and then looked back at Darcy, nodding. “It is a thought.”

“It is. We should probably all talk about it, though.” It would affect all of them, after all. It wasn't like Thor just ignored Sarah's very existence or anything, he was very involved in her life.

He nodded. “Does this mean you would consider it? You would be the one to bear the child.”

Yeah. That was a thing. Her pregnancy with Sarah had been relatively easy, or so she'd been told. Probably something to do with the enhanced DNA she was housing. Still, though, ten months was a _long_ time, and towards the end she'd been kinda miserable. Between the sciatica and the swollen ankles and perpetual low blood pressure, not to mention Sarah pretending her ribs were a trampoline...

“I would consider it.” And honestly, the way his face lit up when she said just that definitely made her want to consider it more. “We'd have to, um, change things up a bit to make sure Steve didn't get me pregnant again.”

Thor's smile grew and got a little heated. He glanced at Steve again for just a second. “Aye. I'm sure he would be more than willing to adjust our positions.”

Steve walked into the kitchen just then, the movement pulling Darcy's attention over to him. Sarah was making grabby-hands at Thor. She was in love with his beard, and he let her pull his long hair to her heart's content.

Darcy stepped away and Thor held his arms out for the baby, taking her and settling her comfortably against his side. There was no question that he loved her, his eyes practically glowing as he looked down at her.

Darcy took the opportunity to tuck herself against Steve's chest. His arms came around her almost automatically, and she turned her face up so he could give her a gentle kiss. “You guys seemed to be having a pretty intense conversation in here.” He glanced between them.

Darcy nodded. “Yeah. About that...”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thor wants to make babies. ALL OF THE BABIES.


	9. Darcy/Brock/Jack

Brock was sitting at the kitchen table, getting some sort of paperwork done from the looks of it. Well, “paperwork.” He was using his tablet, of course, because SHIELD had long since gone digital. For most things, anyway.

Darcy walked over to him and stood just beside his shoulder, waiting until he looked up at her. “Hi.”

He arched an eyebrow a little, eyes scanning her face. “Hey. Everything okay?” He pulled the chair out a little so that there was enough room for her to sit down across his thighs.

She took the offered seat, reaching up to push her fingers through his thick, dark hair. She was totally taller than him like this. “So I was thinking…” She leaned down and brushed her lips against his. “We could go upstairs, and I could bend over the bed, and you could…” She leaned back a little and rocked her hips up and down in an exaggerated thrusting motion.

He looked up at her for a second in silence. “Babe, I’m glad you’re feeling better, but I think I need a little bit more time.” They’d had some admittedly rather energetic sex that morning, and apparently he was still in his refractory period.

Darcy was feeling better, though. She’d spent the majority of the first trimester super, super nauseated, like just the worst. Now, though the nausea was gone, and her sex drive had ramped into overtime.

“Are you serious?” She rested her hands on her hips. “This is all your fault, you know.” She was only half-kidding.

Just then Jack came in, carrying a bottle of water. His gray eyes flicked between them for a second. “What’s going on?”

Brock opened his mouth to answer, but Darcy got there first. “Pregnancy hormones are out of control and Brock won’t fuck me.”

Brock’s gaze swung back to her, eyebrow almost disappearing up into his hair. “Didn’t say that, did I? Just need a little bit more time. Besides, Sitwell will have my balls if I don’t get this finished.” He lifted the tablet up in front of him to clarify.

“Hmm.” Jack turned his attention to Darcy, holding out his free hand to her. “Come over here. Maybe I can help out.”

Darcy grinned as she crossed the living room to him. She slipped her hand into his and let him pull her into his chest. His hands settled on her hips as he leaned down to close his mouth over hers. They kissed for a little bit, tongues dancing together, before Jack straightened away.

“Come sit down with me for a second. I think Brock forgets in his old age that he doesn’t actually need to fuck you in order to get you to come. Maybe we should have a demonstration.” Jack grinned as his eyes flicked back to Brock. He gently guided Darcy over to the chair just across the table from the other man and pulled it out. He sat down, pulling her down onto his lap, her back pressed against his chest.

Jack’s hand slid up under the hem of her shirt, caressing the slight bump of her belly before bringing the shirt up to expose the satiny blue bra she was wearing. Darcy was looking straight at Brock. She watched him push his chair back, the legs scraping against the laminate on the floor as he got to his feet. “Old age? Wasn’t I the one who had Darcy screaming this morning?”

“I dunno. You seem to have forgotten all about how that actually went down since this morning.” Jack shrugged. He leaned forward, his teeth catching against the outer curve of Darcy’s ear.

The purpose on Brock’s face was unmistakable as he rounded the table.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not that he's competitive. Or anything.


	10. Darcy/Heimdall/Thor

Darcy was used to having conversations with the side of Heimdall’s head. He’d glance over at her every now and again, but apparently one of the benefits of being able to see _everything_ was that he didn’t have to be looking at her to see _her_. At least not directly looking at her. It had been a little unnerving at first, and she still wasn’t entirely sure how this whole marriage-union thing was supposed to work, it still actually seemed a little surreal to her, but… She had open access to Asgard whenever she wanted, no matter how much Odin yelled at Thor about it.

Speaking of Thor, they were waiting for him. Heimdall was doing his job as Gatekeeper and sort of looking out over _everything_ while they waited. He did get down to Earth to see her sometimes, but since that very first night it had never been at the same time as Thor, and she saw Thor a lot more often. That was probably going to have to come up some time, but there was a different discussion that was a lot more important right now.

Heimdall glanced over at her again. “He comes.” It was hard to tell if he already knew or not. Theoretically he could have _seen_ it, but what were the chances that he knew what a pregnancy test was or how it worked? He could, he totally could… And his expression gave away nothing. He was wearing the helmet, of course, which made it a little harder to read, but he was totally doing that impassive thing, too. He was _good_ at that shit.

Thor was strolling up the Bifrost from the direction of Asgard, having been there to have a word with his dad or whatever. He had a broad smile on his face, and he sped up until he was standing right in front of Darcy. His hands came up to cup her face, and he leaned down to brush his lips over hers. “What brings you here?”

Despite having access to Asgard, Darcy didn’t spend a whole lot of time there. Odin _still_ wasn’t happy about the whole marriage situation, and it always felt just a little bit less-than-welcoming.

“So, did you know that we’re genetically compatible? I mean, other than just having compatible body parts, we can actually, uh…” She glanced between the two men. “Reproduce.”

“Yes, of course. Volstagg’s wife is of Midgard.” Thor was looking at her like everyone knew that. Well, to be fair, everyone on Asgard probably did know that. And that was definitely information to store away for later, but…

“So, we’re reproducing?” She looked between them again. “I mean, I’m pregnant, and one of you is, uh…” She made a face. “Not entirely sure who. Which we’ll probably need to find out because we’re either the heir to all of this or the next Gatekeeper?” She winced, eyes dropping to the ground in front of her. This had gone so much better in her head.

She barely looked up in time to see Thor as he wrapped his arms around her, lifting her easily off of the floor. “This is glorious news.” He sure sounded happy. Apparently Thor was totally on board with being a daddy. That was good, all things considered.

Her arms were awkwardly pinned to her sides, and she sort of patted at his hip. “So… Yay?” There had been vague talk about babies with both of them at one point or another, a discussion of how they wanted offspring but with no sort of planned timeline.

When he set her down, she turned to see that Heimdall had taken off his helmet and was actually smiling. His hands settled on her waist and he leaned down to kiss her. This was a more lingering, thorough kiss than the brief one they’d shared when she’d first arrived, and she ended up clinging to the front of his armor as best as she could. It wasn’t really comfortable, but she had to work with what was available.

When he straightened away, she was smiling too. “Consensus of yay, then.” She nodded. “That’s good. Only… Who gets to tell Odin? Not it,” she added quickly, because _that_ wasn’t happening.

“My father will welcome a child of our union.” Darcy was privately a little doubtful of Thor’s confidence, but she smiled and nodded anyway.

“The Queen will be overjoyed.” Heimdall gave Thor a pointed look.

Thor chuckled. “Aye, that she will.” He turned his attention back to Darcy. “She’s been hinting lately that would be happier with my own children. She was delighted when we wed.”

Darcy had met Frigga once. Odin was a dick, but Frigga had been nothing but warm and welcoming, so maybe she could make up for her husband from being an ass. That would be good.

Thor was giving her an expectant look. “Wait, you mean now?” Darcy asked as she glanced between them again, and then over at the gigantic palace. Her eyes came back to Thor’s face. “Right now? As in… Right now right now?”

“My mother will want to hear as soon as possible,” Thor affirmed with a nod. He offered her his hand.

“Uh, okay.” She took his hand, and they started walking down towards the palace. Heimdall stayed behind of course. They were really going to have to talk about that. Just apparently not right now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FRIGGA LIVES!!!! Could be a follow up to THAT threesome in Three's Company


	11. Jane/Bucky

Jane folded her arms, one eyebrow arching as she gave James a look. He had his stubborn face on, a scowl pulling down the corners of his mouth. “Things have changed, James. Fathers are even allowed in the delivery room while the baby is being born. There have been a lot of developments in maternal care since…” She trailed off, sighing. She didn’t like reminding him that he’d missed decades of life, but… He was being unreasonable. And things were _vastly_ different now from what he’d told her about his sisters being born.

His scowl was starting to edge into that lost look that broke her heart. “All I’m saying is that I think you shouldn’t be working quite so hard.”

She sighed again. She walked over to where he was standing just in front of her small desk of gadgets (different than the big desk of gadgets) and looked up into his face. “I know I couldn’t stop sleeping for a while, but now I have all my energy back, and then some. I talked to the doctor. As long as I don’t tire myself out, and I don’t stand in one place for too long, I’m fine. Okay?”

He nodded, still not looking entirely convinced. He wasn’t going to argue with what the doctor had told her, that was good. She knew he was just worried, but he tended to go a little overboard with his worry sometimes, especially now that she was expecting a baby. Their baby.

She was about to open her mouth to reassure him, but she felt that bubbly, shifty feeling that meant the baby was moving. She’d been feeling it more and more lately, both more often and stronger.

“What’s going on?” James was clearly on high alert again.

She shook her head. “No, the baby’s moving.” She hadn’t been able to feel it from the outside, but maybe… “Here. Give me your hand.” She held up her hand between them, palm up. He reached towards her, but she shook her head. “Other hand.” His eyes narrowed a little, but he didn’t ask. He placed his cybernetic hand on top of hers.

Jane closed her fingers around the slightly cool metal, pulling it towards her until it was resting low on her abdomen, right over where she’d felt the slightly tickling sensation. He stared down at his hand for a second, because of course the baby had stopped. She shook her head. “Just wait. You might not be able to feel it, I haven’t from the outside yet, but I know you have extra sensors in this hand so I was thinking-” She cut off abruptly when she felt it again, hoping he’d be able to feel it too.

His eyes flew up to hers. “Is that it?”

She grinned. “Yeah, that’s it.”

His gaze dropped back to the curve of her belly again, fingers flexing a little as the baby fluttered just underneath it. “That’s amazing.”

When it stopped, James slid his arms around her and pulled her close against him. There was a tightness in his arms, in his body.

She rested her head against his shoulder. “You know it’ll be okay, right?”

“Yeah, I know.” He didn’t sound entirely convinced. “Just…” She felt his chest rise and fall as he sighed. “Just maybe no more up close readings of spontaneous wormholes, okay?” She didn’t say anything right away. “You know there are people here to help you with that. People that you hired.”

Under protest, but Jane didn’t feel this was the right time to bring that up. “Okay.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It was so hard not to make this smutty when Jane was all, "I have all my energy back, and then some," like, "AND I'LL PROVE IT TO YOU WITH NAKED LAB TIMES"


	12. Jane/Bucky/Clint

“Hey.” Darcy slid into the seat next to Jane’s, turning to the side to look at her friend.

Jane arched an eyebrow. Darcy was wearing her, _I have something super important to tell you_ , face. Knowing Darcy, that could have meant anything. She put her fork down on top of her salad and turned towards the other woman. “Yeah?”

Darcy watched her for a second, expression concerned. “So, you remember James, right?”

Yes, she remembered James. Darcy had a care-taking habit, and one day Jane had gone into the living room of their tiny flat in London to find a dark-haired man there petting the cat Darcy had also brought home at one point and eating Chinese take-out with Darcy. He’d stayed with them for a while. He was quiet, kind of an introvert, helped out around the flat without being asked. Oh yeah, and had left Jane knocked up. Yes, she definitely remembered James.

He’d left suddenly and unexpectedly, and they hadn’t seen him again. Darcy hadn’t been able to find any record of him anywhere.

“You mean James from London, right? Not Tony’s friend?” Who was also James, and probably currently training with Vision or something. That was maybe a little more sarcastic than she’d meant.

Darcy just rolled her eyes. “Obviously. Anyway, turns out that’s Steve’s long lost bestie that he’s been searching for since forever, and he’s here.”

“Here?” Jane pushed back her chair from the circular table, standing up. “As in, here in the facility? Right now?” Darcy was in a position to know, she was Director of Personnel of the Avengers.

“Yeah. So… That’s a thing.” Darcy nodded.

“Thanks.” The word barely had a chance to slip out before Jane was making her way out of the cafeteria. She knocked her shoulder on the sliding door because she was in too big of a hurry to wait for them to open fully, and a small jolt of pain went through her, but that wasn’t insignificant right now.

She pulled her phone out of her pocket as she practically ran through the hall. Clint was second in her contacts list, and she called him.

“Hey, babe,” he answered on the second ring.

“Clint, I need you at home.”

“Oh shit.” He must have heard the upset in her voice. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah, just… No? I need to…” She shook her head. “I’ll explain when I see you.”

Her first stop was at the base’s childcare center. Because SHIELD worked out of the same facility and they were off the beaten track, there was a daycare center right in the building. Her little girl, her Frigga, was sitting on the floor, playing with some blocks. She had the same dark hair as her father, but she was a lot quicker to smile.

Frigga looked up as Jane entered the room, and stood to make her way over to her mother. “Mama!”

Janet, one of the daycare staff, came over as well. “Is everything okay?” Janet asked, looking somewhat concerned.

“Um, yeah. I’m gonna take Frigga home early today.” Jane forced a smile. “Family time, I know they’ll probably be headed out again soon.”

“Sure, sure.” Janet smiled in return, her expression easing.

Jane leaned down to scoop her little girl up into her arms. “Thanks, Janet!” She made sure to keep her pace down to a more sedate, less child-jostling level as she made her way back to the small apartment she shared with Clint, but she was still going faster than Frigga’s little legs would go. She made her way through the halls by memory, her mind moving so fast that she barely saw the gray walls as she passed them.

Clint was waiting for her when she got there. “What’s wrong?” he asked, eyes immediately flying to the little girl in her arms.

Clint was amazing. When they’d first gotten together he accepted Frigga without question, winning her over with old magic tricks from his circus days and persistent love.

“I want down, Mama,” Frigga announced, patting her chubby hand against Jane’s shoulder.

“Okay.” Jane set the little girl down and watched her make her way towards her room before turning her attention back to Clint. “She’s fine. Just, uh… You know how I told you that her father was a kind of a drifter who stayed with us for a bit?”

Clint nodded. “Yeah, of course.” He crossed the room to where Jane was standing, reaching out to close his hands around her upper arms, thumbs stroking a soothing pattern.

“It turns out that he was actually the Winter Soldier?” She winced, looking up into Clint’s blue eyes.

He stared at her for a second, blinking. His hands fell away, and he turned and paced a few steps into the living room. “The Winter Soldier? As in…”

“As in the guy Steve’s been searching for?” She nodded. “Yeah. Darcy said he’s here now, and if he sees me, and he sees Frigga, he’s…” She trailed off, shaking her head. She wasn’t entirely sure what he would do. There was no chance he wouldn’t put two and two together, since he was apparently this highly trained assassin. “Oh shit.” The father of her child had been a brainwashed Hydra assassin. They’d suspected he’d had a hard life, but neither her nor Darcy had pressed him about it.

“Hey.” Clint came back to her, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her close. “Hey. It’s okay, babe. We’ll figure this out together, okay?”

She nodded, clutching the front of his dark shirt.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OKAY IT LOOKS BAD NOW... But they all live happily ever after!!!!  
> There's more in the comments! :D


	13. Jane/Bucky/Steve

Jane woke up. No one was squalling, no one was nudging her awake. She just woke up. It felt like ages since she’d just woken up. She took a moment to enjoy it, stretching her legs out as she rolled over onto her side in the gigantic bed.

She was warm, she was comfortable. Mostly comfortable. The sheets still held the freshly laundered scent from when someone had washed them a day or two ago. This, right here, this was the definition of _perfection_. Her breasts were starting to ache a little, it was probably getting on time to feed Maggie.

Her eyes flew open at that. Maggie. Maggie wasn’t… Crying? Usually her mornings started when Maggie woke up and insisted very loudly that she needed to be fed. But this morning there was… Nothing. Nothing?

Jane sat up and looked at the bed beside her. There was no one else in the bedroom, the bed rumpled and unmade but empty. That in itself wasn’t so unusual, both Steve and James needed less sleep than the average human, but with the absolute hush that seemed to cover the entire apartment, it was enough to be worrying.

She grabbed her bathrobe off the back of the nearby chair as she got to her feet, barely taking the time to close it around herself as she took off towards the baby’s room.

The door was already open and… Steve was standing there. Just standing there, basically taking up the entire door frame with his shoulders. He turned as she approached, though, and the smile on his face was enough to reassure her that everything was okay.

He was wearing just a pair of low-slung pajama pants, and he reached out and snagged his arm around her waist, drawing her into the room and against his side. “Morning,” he breathed, leaning over to nuzzle into the side of her neck.

“Morning,” she returned, settling against the warmth of his body. The last of the tension completely left her as she spotted James asleep in the room’s wooden rocking chair, Maggie snuggled in against his chest. Both of them had their eyes closed, James’ hand was splayed across her back as he held her against him.

It was just so unspeakable sweet, Jane couldn’t help but smile. Maggie was starting to stir a little, pretty soon she’d probably wake up and start demanding to be fed, but right now this was probably the sweetest thing she’d ever seen.

“She woke up a couple of hours ago,” Steve murmured, his lips catching over her ear. “He said she didn’t sound hungry and probably just wanted a cuddle.”

“That’s so cute,” Jane whispered back, not wanting to wake either one of them.

“They are,” Steve agreed, and his grin when she glanced over at him suggested that he meant the people involved rather than the utter preciousness of what was going on.

“I can hear you, you know,” came the dry statement from the chair. James hadn’t opened his eyes, but his mouth was moving. “I’ll show you _cute_ later.” The hand that wasn’t holding Maggie came up, middle finger extended.

Maggie’s stirring was getting a little insistent, she was starting to make the little grunting noises she usually made when she rooted around. Jane slipped away from Steve and moved over to them, leaning down to pull her daughter off of James’ chest.

He stood up, moving out of the way as soon as she had Maggie cradled to her, and she sank down in the rocking chair and got Maggie situated to nurse just as the baby started fussing in earnest.

She kept her eyes locked on the baby’s bright blue ones. It was too soon to tell whether or not they’d stay blue or they’d change into her own brown. She was aware, though, that James was now standing beside Steve, and she looked up to see them watching her the same sort of way she’d been watching James and Maggie. “What?”

“You’re so beautiful,” James said, face serious.

Jane could feel her face getting a little flushed. She didn’t _feel_ beautiful. Her hair was all messed up from sleeping on it, she hadn’t managed a shower yesterday, she was beginning to leak a little from the side Maggie wasn’t nursing from and had forgotten to grab a breast pad _again_. But there was no doubting the earnestness on James’ face as he looked at her, or the sincerity as Steve nodded his agreement.

She couldn’t help but smile a little as she turned her attention back to their daughter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> LET THERE BE FLUFF!!!!!


	14. Jane/Sam

Jane had never really given a whole lot of thought to the idea of having kids. She'd been with Donald for a while, of course, but both of them were so focused on their careers that it wasn't something that really came up aside from vague allusions to future discussions. She'd peripherally known how Thor felt about having children, some combination between actual love of children and his duty to his family line, but that obviously hadn't ended up working out.

So when she found herself in front of the bakery counter at her local grocery store, she had a moment of perfect surreality. How was this even happening?

She was getting an Avengers cake, obviously, because of course Jay wanted an Avengers cake. And this one had taken a little bit of doing, because so many places still didn't have Sam, sorry, Falcon, listed as a possible Avenger. There were probably a few very good reasons for that, but at least she hadn't had to argue with the bakery person about it.

She finished paying for the cake and picked it up off the counter, balancing it across one forearm and her palm while she slid her debit card back into her pocket.

Of course, her phone chose that time to ring. And there was a line forming behind her. Sighing, Jane moved over to the side. She balanced the cake mostly against the glass, trying to fish her phone out of her pocket. Sometimes she really had to cede that purses were a really good idea. This might be easier with a purse.

But she got the phone out before it rang too many times, not pausing to check who was calling her for fear that she'd miss it. “Hello?”

“Hey.” She could _hear_ Sam's smile through the phone, and it made her smile too. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah.” She shifted the cake, using her knee for some extra balance, because it would be a shame to have it end up all over the front of the glass. “I just got done picking up the cake. There was a line and some traffic, but I'm on my way right now.”

“You sure you still want to do this?”

“Of course. It's a kid's birthday party, how hard could it be? Besides, it's not like we have to clean up after.” There'd been some discussion about where to have Jay's party. He'd wanted Chuck E. Cheese, and after some discussion they'd agreed to do it there because of the cleaning up thing. All they had to do was bring Jay and the cake, and even the cake part was optional.

“Okay. I'll see you soon. Love you.”

“Love you too.” Jane hung up the phone and slid it back into her pocket. She could put the cake on the front seat, right? That would probably be a good place for it. Would putting a seat belt around it be overkill?

The seat belt wouldn't work, it turned out, not without squishing everything. But she made it to the Chuck E. Cheese intact, cake and all. She could manage to get everything inside, too, it wouldn't be any different than lab equipment. Right?

One of the staff thankfully held the door open for her as she made her way inside juggling the cake and Jay's gift. All she had to do was follow the noise over to where the party seemed to be in full swing.

Sam took the cake from her, neatly depositing it on the table before sliding his arm around her waist and pulling her in for a warm kiss. “Glad you made it.”

“Me too.” She smiled a little, setting the gift down on the table as well. “Is Jay around?”

“Jay!” Sam called, looking around for the little boy. Technically Jay was Sam's nephew, but Sam had officially adopted him when his sister had passed away.

Jay came out of the crowd of kids, and Jane felt the familiar tingles of panic. She knew Jay and Sam came as a set. In addition to her not really having a whole lot of experience with kids, sometimes Jay wasn't too thrilled that she was taking some of Sam's attention away.

“Happy birthday!” she told him, gesturing to the cake on the table. “Sam said you like chocolate best.” She grinned a little. “Me too.”

Jay looked in the clear plastic window on top of the box, and his face split into a wide smile. “It's Falcon!”

“Well, of course it is,” Jane agreed, slightly relieved. “He is the best Avenger, after all.”

Jay threw his arms around her waist for just the briefest of seconds before he was called away by one of his friends.

That was the first time Jane could remember Jay ever hugging her. She and Sam had a very strict, no forcing or coercing physical affection if Jay didn't want to rule, and she just kinda stared after him for a second.

Sam's hand slid into the small of her back. “And you were worried...” he teased. “I told you he likes you.”

“Yeah, you did.” Jane couldn't stop smiling.

 


	15. Darcy/Thor/Tony

Darcy gingerly held little Piper to her, her eyes tracing out the baby's fringe of eyelashes. “She is absolutely precious,” she whispered, not wanting to wake the baby up. Jane needed all the breaks she could get right now.

“Isn't she?” Jane was speaking at a normal conversational level, though, a big grin on her face. Her eyes were locked on her tiny baby as well. “I never thought I'd be much of a baby person, but apparently...”

Surprising exactly no one, Jane and Rhodey had gotten married last summer. What was a surprise, though, was that Jane's birth control had _spectacularly_ failed. After a lot of discussions and freak outs, they'd decided to go ahead and be parents. Jane had been terrified.

Now, though, she just looked happy. Tired, of course, apparently Piper was up every couple of hours during the night to nurse, but just over the moon. Which was awesome.

“How are you feeling?” Darcy asked, glancing up at her friend. She wasn't whispering anymore. If Jane wasn't going to, she wasn't either.

Jane sighed. “Still a little bit like I got hit by a truck. But Jim is very carefully enforcing the taking it easy part of taking it easy.”

Darcy grinned. “Good. I always knew he was a good one.”

The front door to the apartment opened. Speaking of Rhodey... He came right into the living room, followed closely by Tony. They'd been in Tony's lab looking at potential upgrades to the War Machine suit or something like that. His whole face lit up when he saw his wife and child.

“Hi.” He leaned down to give Jane a gentle kiss. “What do you want for lunch?”

“I swear if you make me eat oatmeal again today, I'm going to stab you with the spoon.” Jane's tone was pleasant enough, but she sounded a little bit serious, too.

It was probably time to surrender Piper to her parents and let them have some family time or whatever. Darcy carefully got to her feet and handed Piper to her daddy, making sure not to jostle her too much. “I think it's time to head out. Call me if you need anything, okay?” She made sure her glance included both Rhodey and Jane.

“I will.” Jane waved at her.

Tony was sort of hovering by the door, and when Darcy walked over to him his eyes snapped to her. There was... Speculation in his eyes, maybe. Something. But he didn't say anything. His hand brushed over the small of her back as he pulled open the door and let them both out into the hallway.

“How's she doing?” he asked as they meandered towards the elevators.

“Good. Tired, of course, but she's happy.”

“Hmm. Hey, did you want to hit the hot tub? I have it on good authority that Thor's already down there.”

Thor was probably soaking after working out or something like that, but the idea of sitting with both of the men in her life while they were all shirtless and wet _really_ sounded like a good idea. “Sure. Just, bathing suit?”

“Why would you wear one of those?” She could practically _feel_ Tony's eyes moving over her.

“Public hot tub, maybe? Middle of the day...”

“We should definitely get one put in upstairs.” That wasn't the first time Tony had said something along those lines, but so far it hadn't managed to happen yet.

Soon, though, Darcy was lowering herself gingerly into the hot tub in her one-piece bathing suit. Rather, she was sitting on the edge with her feet dangling down, it was a process. She couldn't just get right in. Thor was already lounging in there, and Tony settled down on her other side.

“Have you seen Jane and Rhodey's new baby yet?” Tony asked Thor, his hand moving absently up and down the back of Darcy's calf.

Thor shook his head. “Not yet. I don't wish to intrude on them.”

“You wouldn't be intruding, you guys have been friends forever.” Darcy nudged his arm with her ankle. “And Piper's absolutely adorable. I'm sure they'd love for you to visit. Plus you have that thing.” Thor had some kind of Asgardian baby toy for the baby that he wanted to give them.

“We should.” Tony nodded decisively, his arms folding across his chest. He glanced between Thor and Darcy, then his eyes fell to the opposite side of the hot tub.

“Visit? Yeah. I'm planning on taking them some coffee and Danishes tomorrow for breakfast. Which means I should probably get baking soon...” Darcy made a face.

“Have a baby.”

Darcy turned and stared at the top of his head. “Uh, what?” This hadn't really come up before. Not really. Not past hey-kids-might-be-fun-at-some-point.

“You looked good holding Piper, and I can't help but think you'd look better with one of ours.” He sort of waved between himself and Thor. “For obvious reasons, of course, we're both much better looking than Rhodey.”

“Is this one of those things that you've talked about without me again?” They had a habit of doing that, and then bringing it to her at the same time. They'd talked their way into a few things like that. She looked between them, but Thor looked just as surprised as she was.

“My mother would be delighted.” Thor was wearing a bit of a smile. No mention of how his dad would take it... Yeah, that was probably something that was going to be a thing.

Darcy looked back and forth between them. They were both definitely looking at her now, Thor smiling, Tony smirking a bit. “Uh...”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fits into the Keeper 'verse.


End file.
